Mikkel Elle Lepperød, Ph.D.

Research Scientist, Simula Research Laboratory
Group Leader, bioAI Research Group

• Date of Birth: 14.09.1985
• Sex: Male
• Nationality: Norwegian
• ORCID: 0000-0002-4262-5549
• Websites:
  • Simula Research Laboratory Profile
  • Google Scholar

Professional Summary

Dr. Mikkel Elle Lepperød is a Research Scientist at Simula Research Laboratory and founder of the bioAI research group. With expertise spanning computational neuroscience, artificial intelligence, and causal inference, he leads interdisciplinary research initiatives bridging natural and artificial intelligence. His work combines rigorous mathematical modeling with experimental neuroscience to advance our understanding of neural computation and develop bio-inspired AI systems.

As Principal Investigator of multiple research projects and supervisor of a growing research team, Dr. Lepperød has established himself as a leader in the emerging field of NeuroAI. His research program encompasses theoretical neuroscience, machine learning, and causality, with particular emphasis on understanding spatial navigation and learning in biological systems.

Core Competencies

• Neural Circuit Analysis
• Biologically-Inspired AI
• Causal Inference Methods
• Computational Modeling
• Scientific Software Development
• Research Team Leadership

Education & Career Progression

Current Positions

Research Scientist & Group Leader (2022 – Present)
Department of Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing, Simula Research Laboratory

• Founded and leads the bioAI research group
• Directs research initiatives bridging neuroscience and artificial intelligence
• Manages research portfolio of ~4.5 MNOK/year

Adjunct Associate Professor (2023 – Present)
Department of Physics, University of Oslo

• 20% position focusing on NeuroAI research and education
• Bridges academic research between Simula and UiO

Previous Positions

Researcher (2022 – 2023)
Department of Physics, University of Oslo

• Led research initiatives in computational neuroscience
• Led the Neuro-AI project (16 MNOK) as Acting Co-Principal Investigator
• Established collaborative networks in NeuroAI

Postdoctoral Fellow (2020 – 2022)
Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo

• Co-founded the bioAI research group

Research Assistant (2014 – 2015)
Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo

Education

Ph.D. in Neuroscience (2020)
University of Oslo, Norway

• Dissertation: “Dissecting neuronal circuits for navigation in experiments and models”
• Integrated computational modeling with experimental neuroscience
• Supervisors: Torkel Hafting, Marianne Fyhn, Gaute Einevoll, Trygve Solstad

M.Sc. in Applied Mathematics (2014)
Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway

• Thesis: “Numerical stability of a scalar neural-field model with a sigmoidal firing-rate function”
• Combined mathematical modeling with neural systems
• Supervisors: John Wyller, Bjørn Fredrik Nielsen

Mobility

Visiting Researcher (2017/2018)
Stefan Leutgeb’s Lab, University of California San Diego

• 6-month research stay focusing on experimental methods for spatial navigation
• Established ongoing international collaboration

Visiting Researcher (2016)
Marc de Kamps’ Lab, University of Leeds

• 1-month intensive collaboration on density methods for neural networks
• Resulted in two joint publications and one book chapter

Career Breaks

• Parental leave: 2017, 2020 (5 months each)

Research Impact & Leadership

Research Leadership Trajectory

• 2023-Present: Co-established NeuroAI as strategic focus area in Norway
• 2022: Founded bioAI research group at Simula
• 2020-Present: Built and leads team of 10 PhD students and 1 postdoc
• 2019-Present: Secured and co-manages first research grant

Project Management

bioAI Research Program (2020 – Present)
Principal Investigator, Simula Research Laboratory

• Funding: ~4.5 MNOK/year
• Established new research group bridging neuroscience and AI
• Outcomes:
• Multiple peer-reviewed publications
• Built team of 10 PhD students and 1 postdoc
• Developed novel bio-inspired AI architectures
• International collaborations with McGill, UPenn, and UCSD

Neuro-AI Project (2020 – 2026)
Acting Co-Principal Investigator, University of Oslo

• Funding: 16 MNOK from Research Council of Norway
• Led interdisciplinary collaboration between neuroscience and AI researchers
• Outcomes:
• Multiple peer-reviewed publications
• Established NeuroAI as strategic research priority
• Created national network of researchers

Teaching

• Causality lecture, Honours program, University of Oslo, (2024)
• Summer School in Computational Physiology, University of Oslo and University of California San Diego , (2023, 2024)
• Scientific Computing and Programming in Biosciences, University of Oslo, (2015-2020)
  • Developed teaching material and held lectures in multiple courses

Research Group Leadership

bioAI Group, Simula Research Laboratory (2020 – Present) Leading a dynamic research group focusing on bio-inspired AI and computational neuroscience:

• Founded and leads research group
• Manages team of 11 researchers (1 postdoc, 10 PhD students)
• Established research vision and strategic objectives

Postdoctoral Researchers

• Sidney Pontes-Filho (2022 - 2025), Simula Research Laboratory, Norway

PhD Students

Main Supervision

Finished

• Vemund Schøyen (2020 – 2024), University of Oslo, Norway

Ongoing

• Nicolai Haug (2023 – 2027), Simula Research Laboratory, Norway
• Markus Pettersen (2022 – 2025), Simula Research Laboratory, Norway
• Mia Kvalsund (2022 – 2026), University of Oslo, Norway
• Konstantin Holzhausen (2021 – 2024), University of Oslo, Norway
• Priya Tarigopula (2021 – 2024), University of Oslo, Norway

Co Supervision

• Krubeal Danieli (2022 - 2025), University of Oslo, Norway
• Frederik Rogge (2021 – 2024), University of Oslo, Norway
• Mateusz Wasiluk (2021 – 2024), University of Oslo, Norway
• Maria Fjelstad (2019 – 2024), University of Oslo, Norway

Supervision of Master’s Students

• Janita Willumsen, Mia Merlid (Ongoing), University of Oslo, Norway
• Vilde Ung* (2024), University of Oslo, Norway
• Håkon Olav Torvik, Sara Jensen*, Herman Brunborg* (2023), University of Oslo, Norway
• Markus Pettersen* (2022), University of Oslo, Norway
• Mina Frey (2018), University of Oslo, Norway

* Indicates student who continued to PhD program

Research Internship Program

• Managed extensive internship program:
  • Funded by Center for Computing in Science Education, Univeristy of Oslo, Norway
  • Total supervised: 24 students (2018-2024)
  • Outcomes:
    • 3 published papers with intern co-authors
    • Created pipeline for identifying research talent

Strategic Leadership

AI Strategy Development (2024)

• Selected member of Simula’s AI Task Force
• Contributing to establishment of Simula-wide AI strategy
• Leading initiatives in bio-inspired AI development

NeuroAI Field Development (2022 – Present)

• Co-established NeuroAI as national priority
  • Led collaboration initiative between Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research and US Department of Energy
  • Board Member, Special Interest Group for NeuroAI Norway (NORA)
  • Building networks between academic and industry partners
  • Part of core writing group for grant application for national neuroAI research center

Professional Service

Editorial Roles

Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience

• Guest Editor, Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience, Research Topic: Towards bio-inspired machine learning (2024)
• Review Editor, Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience and Computational Physiology sections (2022 - Present)

Journal Reviewer ICLR, Nature Communications, Nature Machine Intelligence, PLOS Computational Biology, eNeuro, Neural Computing and Applications

Workshop & Conference Organization

2024 Events

• Lead Organizer: NeuroAI Workshop, Hurtigruten
  • 4-day intensive workshop
  • 37 international participants
  • Theme: Validating models: How would success in NeuroAI look like?
  • Outcome: two podcast episodes on two channels, news outlet
• Co-Organizer: Simula-NCMM Workshop
  • 40 participants
  • Focus on interdisciplinary research
• Co-Organizer: Strategic RRI Seminar
  • 45 participants
  • Led discussions on responsible research innovation

2023 Events

• Co-Organizer: Three NeuroAI workshops
  • Connected national and international labs
  • 20-30 participants each
• Co-Organizer: Workshop on open-source software development
  • Initiated idea
  • 20 participants
  • Focus on best practices and collaboration
• Co-Organizer: Strategic AI & Ethics seminar
  • Initiated idea
  • Contributed talk and panel discussion
  • 40 participants from across Simula and external humanities researchers

Previous Events

• Co-Organizer: Data Management Workshop, Trondheim (2019)
  • Brought international experts from Neuro Data Without Borders and DataJoint
  • Focus on standardizing neuroscience data practices
  • 20 participants
• Co-Organizer: Workshop in Neuroscience Methods (2015)
  • 30 participants
  • University of Oslo

Leadership Development

2022 Executive Education

• Completed “High-Potential Leaders” program at Wharton
• Selected for Simula’s ERC Incubator program
  • Preparation for ERC Starting Grant submission
• Intensive research leadership training at Simula

Other Relevant Professional Experiences

• Invited Software Developer: NWB hackathon days at Howard Hughes Medical Institute (2018)
  • Started development of a backend for storing data using Exdir, software co-developed
• Software Developer: NEST version 2.12.0 and 2.16.0, part of the Human Brain Project for simulating large-scale neural networks (2017)
  • Outcome: collaboration with Marc de Kamps
• Data Manager: DigiBrain project at the University of Oslo (25% time commitment), Digital Life Norway (2017 – 2019)
• Lecturer: “Computing in Biological Sciences” (25% time commitment), University of Oslo, Norway (2015 – 2019)
• Assistant Organizer: Workshop in Neuroscience Methods (30 participants), University of Oslo, Norway (2015)

Memberships / Networks

• Special Interest Group for NeuroAI Norway, aiming to establish NeuroAI as a prospering research field in Norway (2023 - Present)
  • Website: NORA SIG NeuroAI
• Society for Neuroscience (USA)
• Nansen Neuroscience Network (Norway)
• Federation of European Neuroscience Societies

Major Collaborations

• Deep learning for drug discovery using heart-on-a-chip technology (2023 – Present)
  • Collaborator: Prof. Aslak Tveito, Research Prof. Samuel Wall, Research Prof. Andy Edwards
  • Role: Co-Principal Investigator
• Normative models of hippocampal activity (2023 – 2024)
  • Collaborator: Associate Prof. Blake Richards, Mila and McGill University
  • Role: Co-Principal Investigator, PhD exchange
• Causal discovery in the brain (2018 – Present)
  • Collaborator: Prof. Konrad Kording, University of Pennsylvania
  • Role: Co-Principal Investigator and Co-Author
  • Outcomes: One publication
• Experimental methods for dissecting spatial navigation (2017 – Present)
  • Collaborator: Prof. Stefan Leutgeb, University of California San Diego
  • Role: Co-Supervisor for visiting PhD students
  • Outcomes: Knowledge exchange
• Density methods for simulating spiking neural networks (2016 – 2023)
  • Collaborator: Prof. Marc de Kamps, University of Leeds
  • Role: Co-Principal Investigator and Co-Author
  • Outcomes: Two publications

Technical Expertise

Core Technical Skills

Notable Technical Achievements

Data Management & Analysis

• Co-developed Exdir and Expipe data format for neuroscience
• Built custom analysis pipelines for neural data processing
• Core Contributor NEST Neural Simulator in versions 2.12.0 and 2.16.0
• Developer for MIND Neural Population Simulator

Data Science & AI

• Co-developed custom implementations of neural network architectures
• Created analysis tools for spatial navigation data
• Causal modeling and inference systems
• Built real-time experimental control and data acquisition systems

Technical Leadership

• Established coding standards and best practices for research groups
• Led technical workshops on scientific computing
• Managed collaborative development across international teams
• Supervised technical aspects of multiple PhD projects

Scholarships and Awards

• Research exchange scholarship to University of California San Diego (UCSD)
  • Given by the Research council of Norway
  • Visited the Leutgeb lab
• Erasmus scholarship
  • Given to exchange students in Europe.

Public Engagement & Outreach

Media Appearances

• Brain inspired podast (2024)
  • Episode 1, Episode 2
• Theoretical Neuroscience podcast (2024)
  • Episode 1, Episode 2 (shared publication with brain inspired podcast above)
• Comprehensive research profile interview (2023)
  • “Hjerneforskning vil gi oss bedre kunstig intelligens” (titan.uio.no)
  • Cross-posted in major national technology media (digi.no)
• Interviewed by NRK for a news article about optogenetics as a treatment option for major depression:
  • “Laseren som kan løse depresjonsgåten”
• Guest on the Jøss Podcast (appeared twice, ~4,000 monthly listeners)

Public Writing

• Summarized NeuroAI workshop on Hurtigruten (2024)
  • Navigating the Future of NeuroAI
• Co-authored opinion editorial on AI ethics (2023)
• “Debatt: Norge som fanebærer for etikk i en uforutsigbar framtid”
• Published in major national technology media (digi.no)
• Accessible research output on social media (Twitter/X, LinkedIn, BlueSky)

Invited Speaking Engagements

• NeuroAI workshop (2024)
• AI Week, OsloMet (2023)
• Keynote Speaker: Young Researchers in NeuroAI Conference, NMBU (2023)
• INC Chalk Talk, University of San Diego, USA (2022)
• NRSN Conference: Seminar on Bio-Inspired Computing (2021)

References

For more information, please visit my Simula Research Laboratory Profile or my Google Scholar page.